Silk Pants
by obasan45
Summary: Yaoi. Koyu X Shuei. Koyu "outgrows" his silk pants. Written in response to LiveJournal Saiun Challenge prompt "Awakening".


**Title : **Silk Pants

**Disclaimer : **I do not own Saiunkoku Monogatari. It belongs to Sai Yukino.

**Rating : **T for theme only

**Genre : **Humour

**Warnings : **Yaoi leanings.

**Pairing : **KoyuXShuei

**Summary : **Koyu "outgrows" his silk pants! ^_^

**Notes : **

(1)_ Italics = _thoughts. **Bold** = flashback.

(2) The first 495 words were written in response to a LiveJournal Saiun_Challenge prompt "Awakening", which had a 500-word limit. The fic "grew" by the time I was ready to submit it here!

**PLEASE REVIEW. EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT A MEMBER, I APPRECIATE YOUR NOT-LOGGED-IN COMMENTS (MY RESPONSE WILL BE ON THE REVIEW PAGE IF I CAN'T SEND YOU A PM).**

* * *

Reishin, with a flourish, handed Kijin a sheet of paper.

Two seconds. Five seconds.

"Why am I looking at an order for twenty pairs of silk pants?"

"Not just silk pants, Kijin, but of the finest quality silk!"

"Rrrright."  
Kijin paused.  
"So why am I looking at an order for twenty pairs of the finest quality silk pants?"

Barely able to contain his smirk, Reishin announced triumphantly,  
"That's Koyu's order!"

Kijin laughed in sudden understanding.  
"So Koyu has learnt to _feel _his pants! Congratulations, Dumpling, your son has finally awakened."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Koyu fidgeted. Surreptitiously, he reached beneath his tunic and tugged at his pants.  
_Unbelievable_. _To think I've been wearing these pants all these years!_ _How_ _did they get so uncomfortable?  
Ahhh … that's better._

Koyu sat more comfortably. He was too restless to read. And as was the case every afternoon at the Archives, Koyu had nothing to do, waiting for his emperor tutee that hadn't shown up for a month. Koyu hoped Shuei would arrive soon.

_Shuei.  
_Koyu tingled all over. Just the THOUGHT of that name was enough to make his heart skip a beat. Koyu laughed at himself.  
_Whatever happened to the level-headed Li Koyu?_

Koyu knew the precise moment the level-headed Li Koyu vanished.  
_Last night._

**… when** **Shuei** **looked** **into** **his** **eyes**.  
**… when** **he** **saw** **Shuei's** **eyes** **darken**.  
**… when** **his** **own** **body** **responded** **to** **the** **desire** **in** **Shuei's** **eyes**.

_My_ _own_ _body_. _Strange_. _It's_ _like I_ _have a_ _new_ _body_.

**After** **that** **look** **into** **Shuei's** **eyes**, **all** **the** **way** **home**, **walking** **next** **to** **Shuei**, **Koyu's** **body** **was** **exceptionally** **sensitive**. **The** **friction** **against** **the** **coarse** **silk** **pants** **was** **close** **to** **painful**. **Hurting with every step**, **Koyu** **finally** **understood** **why** **Reishin** **had** **been** **hounding** **him** **to** **upgrade** **his** **underpants**.

Koyu smiled ruefully.  
_As_ _they_ _say_, _parents_ _knows_ _best_!

_Was that desire in Shuei's eyes?_

**The** **charged** **moment** **was** **gone** **all** **too** **quickly**. **Shuei** **stepped** **back**, **turned**, **and** **resumed** **walking**.

_Perhaps I saw what I WANTED to see._

**But**, **after** **two** **steps**, **Shuei** **stumbled**, **and** **fell**. **Koyu** **had** **never** **seen** **the** **sure**-**footed** **General** **so** **much** **as** **miss a** **step**. **Scrambling** **to** **his** **feet**, **Shuei** **grinned sheepishly. The hand he used to wipe away the beads of sweat on his upper lip was unsteady.**

_Arrghh! How does Shuei feel about this?_

"Koyu?"

Koyu flushed and pulled his hand out from under his tunic. He felt he needed to explain why his hand was where it was.  
"My pants. Uncomfortable."

"Uh-huh."  
Shuei took the cloth-wrapped package from under his armpit.  
"Here. You can borrow some of mine, until you get new pants."

"What? How?"

Shuei grinned, his cheeks turning pink.  
"I noticed how you were walking last night. And also, how coarse the silk of your pants was."

Blushing, Koyu accepted the package wordlessly.  
_He noticed … oh! The humiliation!  
And it still doesn't tell me how he feels!_

_Oh. My. God.  
I'm going to be wearing SHUEI'S underpants!  
_Koyu's newly awakened senses went into overdrive.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Turn around. Slowly."

Koyu spun on his heels, in excruciatingly slow motion.

Shuei laughed.  
"Hmm. Perfect fit. And you are like, two inches shorter than me? I guess your length is all in your pants."

"SHUEI !"

"What? OH! No, no, I didn't mean it _that _way! Honest! I meant, you have long legs. Nice."

Koyu blushed.  
_Is_ _he_ _paying_ _me a_ _compliment_? _That's_ _new_.

"Although, two inches _would _be about right, I guess, between yours and mine."

Koyu threw the only thing he had in his hands at Shuei. He regretted it immediately. He watched in mortification as his underpants, freshly stripped off his body, wrapped themselves around Shuei's head.

Shuei stiffened.  
_Warm. Fragrant. Cedar. Thyme. Koyu's sweat._

Koyu saw Shuei's hands reach towards his face. But instead of pulling off the pants, they bunched the folds of silk and pressed them into his face.

Koyu gasped. He couldn't breathe.  
_That's … intimate!  
Or is it? I don't know!_

Hearing Koyu gasp, Shuei snapped out of his warm cedar and thyme dream.  
_Good grief! What am I DOING?  
_  
Shuei mentally kicked himself. He had a long talk with himself the night before. He and himself had agreed on the following:  
_- We desire_ _Koyu_ (_badly!)_  
_- It appears that Koyu feels the same._  
_- Koyu is inexperienced and vulnerable.  
- We need to be certain that it's more than just lust on our part.  
- So, for now, play it cool!_

_Play it cool – and what did I do?  
Embarrass Koyu by telling him he's got NICE long legs!  
Scandalize Koyu by sniffing at his underpants!_

Shuei pulled the silk pants off his head.  
_Rrrright_. _I've just got to brazen this out.  
_He looked at Koyu, and promptly forgot his hastily prepared line.

Koyu was breathing fast, through slightly parted lips. His large pale grey eyes were fixed upon Shuei, uncertain, guileless.

_I've got to get out of here!  
_Shuei spun around. Just before he disappeared through the doors of the Archives, he shouted back at Koyu.  
"I'm going to get your dinner!"

Koyu sank slowly into a chair.  
_It's way too early to get dinner!_

[Two hours later]

Koyu ate his dinner absently. Half his mind was listening to Shuei's light chatter. The other half of his mind was on the disappearance of his old silk pants. Shuei had left the Archives with it. He returned with the dinner tray. No pants. No explanation.

"Shuei, where are my old pants?"

"Did you want them back?"

"Uh, no … not really … "

"Good."  
Shuei changed the subject.

**[The End]**

* * *

**Notes :**

**(1) In terms of "fit", this fic goes between chapter 2 and chapter 3 of my fanfic Twin Irises.**

**(2) Shuei's POV on that "eyelock" that took place the night before is just before the end of chapter 2 of Twin Irises.**

**(3) The pants in this fic are NOT briefs/boxers! ^_^ They are _long _pants, that can be worn beneath outer clothings, but they are also decent enough to be seen by people. As Saiunkoku is more or less based on Chinese culture, I assume that the characters do not wear briefs beneath their long pants. As such, I refer to these pants as "underpants" because they are worn next to the skin. ****These pants are the white pants you see Koyu wearing beneath his aqua-green tunic. They are also the pants that peek out from Kijin's yellow tunic occasionally. Even for those who wear full skirts, eg Reishin and Shuei, it is assumed that they _do _wear such pants beneath! ^_^**


End file.
